Blog
Discussion List
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New Services offered for ClubSport Wheel
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The ClubSport Series is our state-of-the-art product line and our customers can expect to get outstanding service for it.
On top of the great service we already provide we will even offer an enhanced service for all simracers which depend on their product and want to be sure that they always have perfectly working equipment in order to participate in the competitions.
Therefore we will offer the ClubSport base and both wheel rims in version with included Premium Service Pack.
The premium service pack gives you high priority access to our support channels and we guarantee you that we will repair your product within 48 hours on working days. If it takes longer you will get a free replacement unit as loaner until you have your product back. You will get this service throughout the full warranty period.
The PSP is not available as a stand alone product so you have to decide during your purchase if you want to get it or not. You already have a CSW?
All existing customers of the CSW and the rims will get the PSP for free!
The second service we offer is the Maintenance pack. Basically you can send in the ClubSport base and we will make sure it works properly again. We will exchange all parts which can wear out and it makes sure that you have a working wheel long time after the warranty period is over.
Just like a real car, a mechanical unit needs some attention from time to time and we will make sure that you get all spare parts you need to keep the wheel running.
The ClubSport wheel is a long term investment and not a plastic toy which will be thrown away after a few years.
Both services are only available in Europe so far but we will extend it soon to other territories and products.
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Firmware 756 now available for PWGT3RS V2
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After the CSR Elite wheel users are happy it is time to release the wheel for the Porsche 911 GT3 RS V2 wheel.
This firmware is only compatible to the V2 version of the GT3 wheel!
Please note that you must follow the the instructions carefully. Installation on Windows 8 will work.
Make sure that you calibrate the shifter and center position after the firmware update.
Please make sure you use driver version 144 or higher with this firmware.
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Firmware 757 now available for CSR Elite wheel
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We have fixed the fan issue on FW 756 and released 757 for the CSR Elite wheel. There is no other change than that.
There are comments that this version works with that game better and the other fw version with the other game.
Force feedback is to a high degree a matter of taste and also highly depends on what the game developers do with it. It is almsot impossible to make a version which is perfect for everybody and every game. We give you a choice so you can decide if you want to keep an older version or go with the latest one.
"Latest" does not automatically mean better for some people and if you are happy with your wheel then I would recommend not to change anything.
Please note that you must follow the the instructions carefully. Installation on Windows 8 will work.
Make sure that you bind your wheel and calibrate the shifter and center position after the firmware update.
Please make sure you use driver version 144 or higher with this firmware.
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Firmware 756 now available for CSR Elite Wheel - EDIT- PLEASE READ
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First of all I wish you a Happy new year! We will start the year with a new firmware release but we will release many other new goodies as well this year.
It turned out that all issues with 756 on the other wheels were not firmware related so it is time to release this version for the next wheel: The Forza Motorsport CSR Elite Wheel.
This version is again a release candidate and if there will be no bugs reported we will release it as final firmware.
Please note that you must follow the the instructions carefully. Installation on Windows 8 will work.
Make sure that you bind your wheel and calibrate the shifter and center position after the firmware update.
We will release 756 for PWGT3RS within the next days.
Please make sure you use driver version 144 or higher with this firmware.
EDIT:
IMPORTANT
We found a serious bug in the fan control. Please do not use this firmware version. We will release a new version asap.
Download firmware 756 for CSR E
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Merry Christmas from Fanatec
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Let me wish all of our community members a merry Christmas. I hope you have a great time with your families with a lot of good food, presents and most of all: happiness.
Have a great time and do what you love to do!
Here is a little greeting from us:
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Firmware 756 now available for CSR Wheel
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After the succesful release of Firmware 756 for the PWGT2 and PWTS with no issues, we can now release this version for the Forza Motorsport CSR wheel.
This version is again a release candidate and if there will be no bugs reported we will release it as final firmware.
Please note that you must follow the the instructions carefully. Installation on Windows 8 will work.
Make sure that you bind your wheel and calibrate the shifter and center position after the firmware update.
We will release 756 for CSR E and PWGT3RS within the next days.
Please make sure you use driver version 144 or higher with this firmware.
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Unbeatable CSL bundles are now available
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We have just launched new bundles with our new CSL seat.
In Europe we bundle it with our CSR wheel and CSR pedals and in the USA we have it available with our 911 GT3 RS wheel and CSR pedals.
For just 399,95 USD (CSL Porsche edition) or 499,95 € (CSL Forza Motorsport edition) you receive:
- High quality, full spec cockpit with seat and shifter adapter
- Belt driven Force feedback wheel with all the Fanatec goodies like Tuning display and alcantara rim
- Multi platform compatibility with PC and full PS3 compatibility (all racing games) and in case of the CSR wheel even Xbox 360
- High quality pedals
And where can you get such a bundle from one manufacturer which makes sure that everything fits perfectly together?
We will make community reviews for the CSL seat very soon.
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Firmware 756 now available for PWGT2 and PWTS
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We have a new firmware version for all Porsche 911 GT2 and Turbo S wheels (Xbox versions)
This version is a release candidate and if there will be no bugs reported we will release it as final firmware.
Please note that you must follow the the instructions carefully. Installation on Windows 8 might work but is not tested.
Make sure that you bind your wheel and calibrate the shifter and center position after the firmware update.
IMPORTANT: If you upgrade to this version then the RF dongle does not work any longer. If you want to use a wireless connection on PC and PlayStation 3 then you must use the original 681 version.
We will release 756 for CSR, CSR E and PWGT3RS within the next weeks.
Please make sure you use driver version 144 or higher with this firmware.
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CSL Seat is now available for Pre-order
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The CSL Seat is now avilable for pre-order and the first shipments will arrive before Christas in North America and Europe.
Please check out the Fanatec.com website for full features of this product and have a look at the intro video.
(You might notice another product there as well)
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Firmware 037 for CSW available
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We have a new firmware available for the ClubSport Base with the following changes:
- LED rev lights supported in PS3 games
- Alternative button combination to switch to PS3 mode (select + the button in the middle between select and start)
- Improved initialisiation routine
- More steady FF characteristics
- Better linearity of FF signals
- New updater
- New fan control
Please use this firmware only with driver 144 which is included in this package as well.
Changes:
- Fixed an issue with RBR
- Combined pedal mode added (for compatibility with WRC 3)
Please use this driver only with CSW or with PWX and CSR wheels with firmware of 750 or higher.
More firmware updates for other models to follow soon.
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New website is up and running
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Yesterday we finally launched the new website. It took a little bit but we wanted to be sure that all bugs are eliminated.
Check out the new configurator! We also added more payment options and of course we added the new territories Australia and Japan.
We are still not finished and the most important things which is missing is a proper community section.
Please let me know how you like it and what kind of suggestions you have for the new website.
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Australia: The first products are on the way!
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We finally were able to send the first products to Australia last week and they will arrive in December.
The only thing missing is the GST number for Endor Australia as it takes ages to get this number from the authorities. We now sent the goods on our risk and hope that we get the GST number in time before the containers arrive.
We plan to offer the full product range but it will take some weeks until everything is there.
Although many of you did not believe it anymore it is a fact that we highly appreciate this market and I personally LOVE Australia and the Australians although I have only been there one time. It used to be one of our biggest markets in the past and my target is to make it as strong as it was and more.
I will let you know once we are able to start shipping the products or start taking orders.
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Black Friday: Get a FREE Formula rim
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So here we go with the Black Friday offer of Fanatec.
This year we decided to give you a free Formula rim if you purchase a ClubSport Base with a BMW rim.
The total price for the base with two wheel rims is just 699,95 (USD w/o Tax and € incl. VAT)
We have limited supply so this offer only lasts until we are sold out and have no more inventory. It is valid in the USA, Canada and Europe and will only be available for one day.
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Introducing the CSL seat
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It has been a bit quiet but this is because we were working on a lot of things and there will be an update on the announced new products and the Australian shipments within the next two weeks.
But we were also working secretly on new product: The CSL Seat
The CSL seat is a stunning construction with a very clever and unique design. It is not only super solid and perfectly suitable for our strong ClubSport wheel. It is at the same time extremely lightweight, fully adjustable in any relevant way and super comfortable.
It comes with a shifter holder and is fully compatible to the following wheels, pedals and shifter sets:
- All Fanatec products
- G25 / G27
- T500 RS
The seat cover will be easily exchangeable and we will offer additional designs as well.
Does it look familiar to you? This seat was previously sold under a different name but we came to an agreement with the designer and manufacturer to sell this product exclusively under the Fanatec brand and manufactuered by our factories. Renato is a genious engineer and there are more products in the pipeline from him.
The production has already started and we will fly in the first units for immediate delivery.
The price will be 299,95 USD / € and it will be available for pre-order from next week.
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Greger Huttu runs Suzuka (iRacing)
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Our team driver Greger shows you how to drive a fast lap on Suzuka in a F1 car.
Greger is one of the fastest guys in the world so enjoy how he drives and perhaps you can learn from it so you can challenge him.
This is a rare video as not many people have seen Greger driving so far. Usually you just see his virtual car in front of you.
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Driver 142 released
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We are happy to release a new driver version 142 for all Fanatec wheels.
We fixed several small bugs and improved wheel detection and and registry cleanup.
Please uninstall your previous driver and reboot the PC after installation of 142.
This time we do not release it as beta version and it is safe to install it.
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A unique wheel can be yours! Charity auction is now online.
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The CSR Elite wheel with Formula rim which was signed by current F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel is now on sale in an eBay auction.
Due to technical reasons the auction is limited to European customers.
100% of the auction result will be donated to the Wings for Life organisation which tries to cure and prevent paraplegia. Wings for Life was founded by MotoX world champion Heinz Kinigadner and Dietrich Mateschietz, the owner of Red Bull. Paraplegia can happen to anybody so we fully support this organisation and I hope you will do so as well.
In return you will get a unique and fantastic racing wheel. A true collectors item.
PS: No, I dont have any news about Autralia and the ClubSport Shifter
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F1 drivers fight it out on Fanatec ClubSport Wheels
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Here is the video footage of the race session which was recorded just before the Monza Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton, Heikki Kovalainen and Bruno Senna came with their race engineers and had some innovative race which included a driver change.
The drivers used the PS3 version of F1 2012 with the Formula rim and our CSR Elite pedals mounted on a Playseat.
If you watch the video carefully you might notice something in our wheel.
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CSP V2 review
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Doug Meyer of Sim Racing Review has made a very informative review about the new ClubSport Pedals V2.
Enjoy!
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Porsche 911 GT2 ClubSport edition XXL now available
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We have a new bundle package available and this time we packed the following things together:
- Porsche 911 GT2 racing wheel
- ClubSport Pedals V2
- Clubsport carbon shifter paddles
- RF dongle for PS3 or PC
- Porsche wheel shifter set
It is available now for 499,95 USD (excl. VAT) or 499,95 € (incl. VAT).
This means a discount of about 100 €/USD!
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F1 2012 wheel compatibility
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Codemasters has just confirmed the compatibility of our wheels with their latest racing title.
Here you can see the full compatibility list.
Let me know what settings you prefer. Please list your wheel and platform.
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What driver features do you want?
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We are now planning to add more features into our PC driver (not firmware).
please tell us what features you like to see and describe them as good as you can. Perhaps add screenshots or drawings so we have a better understanding.
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Firmware 750B and driver 1.40 UPDATE
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We finally came up with a new firmware version for almost all wheels. It is still declared as BETA but we solved all known bugs.
We are releasing it now as open beta so you can report if we still missed some issues.
Important:
After updating the firmware you must
- calibrate the h-pattern shifter
- calibrate the center of the wheel
ACL is "Autoclutch". If you have it turned to "on" you send out two different button presses so you can shift and activate the clutch at the same time. This only works with Forza Motorsport and other games where you can assign a button to the clutch axis.
In case you have any issues you should first reset the Tuning settings to default by pressing the tuning button for 10 seconds.
UPDATE:
PWGT2 and PWTS: The RF dongle will not work with this firmware version due to the increased data transfer rate
PWGT3RS V2: There was a copy+paste error in the previous file which is now corrected. Please wait a few seconds until the wheel is detected.
Changelog:
- Optimized digital pedal input in Xbox mode
- Fixed issue with ABS not working at 100
- Optimized ABS rumble on lower ABS values
- Improved USB input dataflow
- Optimized cooling (fan)
- Optimized force feedback effects
- Optimized performance with telemetry output on Tuning display
750B will harmonize perfectly with the new driver 1.40 on PC.
Please do not update if you are not confident to do so and if you are happy with your wheel as it is.
Firmware 750B for
- CSR
- CSR Elite
- 911 GT3 RS V2
- 911 GT2
- 911 Turbo S
Driver 1.40 for
- all Fanatec products:
We fixed several issues on the user interface and registry cleanup.
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Manual for ClubSport Pedals V2 now online
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The next video manual is about the ClubSport Pedals V2.
Especially the procedure to fill up the oild is important. You must not use too much or not enough oil to make it work properly.
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First CSWs and CSP V2s arrive at customers and firmware 32 is now online
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The first new wheels and pedals arrived yesterday and today in the hands of our customers.
If you are one of the lucky ones, please post a picture here or on facebook to show your new set-up.
Some people who ordered with a September delivery will be surprised to get the wheels ealier as we have more inventory rolling in in July and August. But we decided to give no earlier availability date as everybody is happy if it comes earlier and we don't want to mention another deadline which cannot be met. Hey, we are learning.
In the support section of Fanatec.com you can now download the latest firmware for your CSW.
The new updater is simplified and works on the most popular Windows systems.
The electronics of the CSW is entirely different from the CSR and Porsche wheels and therefore the firmware numbers are different.
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CSW and CSR E video manuals are now online
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Nobody likes to read manuals. But it contains some useful info so we thought to make it a bit more fun to have a look on the functions of your new wheel.
We will make a dedicated and more detailed video about the tuning settings and how they affect gameplay at a later stage.
And of course we plan to make more video manuals for all our products.
Forza MotorSport CSR Elite video manual:
ClubSport Wheel Base
BMW M3 GT3 rim
Formula rim
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Back on track UPDATE 2
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We just put the new products online on the old website in our webshop.
The product description and support site is still missing but will be finished this week.
Unfortunately we had to send out an e-mail to a few European customers who placed an order last week as the product was actually already sold out. The inventory management system did not work. Of course they will be the first to get wheels from the next shipment and we can guarantee that there will be enough inventory.
There is a small number of units available from the batch which arrives in early August in US and EU so if you order now, you "just" have to wait a few weeks.
As we are also clear with order and inventory situation we can ship all open and paid orders in the US from last week and all confirmed orders in EU from last week before the end of this week.
The new website will have to undergo some intensive review and we will move to a much more powerful server and provider. Of course we learned a lot and therefore we did not announce a specific time to launch the products this time.
Now it is time to ramp up production without sacrifying quality and fly in more units so we can keep up with the demand.
There was a bit confusion about the prices for the CSR E. On the new website we actually reduced the price to 499,95 for the first sea shipments which should arrive in a few weeks. So if you are not in a hurry you can save some money in a few weeks.
And no, we have not forgotten about the Australians but I cannot announce anything specific at the moment so it is still work in progress. Same for Japan.
Thanks for staying with us during this exciting and crazy launch of the new ClubSport series and I hope that you all enjoy your new gadgets very soon.
UPDATE
That was fast.
The next shipment is sold out as well so the shipment date moved to September.
UPDATE 2
It looks like we get the performance problems again although this website is on a complete different server. Pleeeease..... not this site as well. We are running out of options. Do we have to sell them on eBay?
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Rock and Rollback UPDATE
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What a weekend. The team was working almost day and night over the past days trying to fix the damage caused by the server crash on Friday.
Within minutes we received a huge amount of orders and order attempts although the website was super slow and it was nearly impossible to finalize the order.
A few hundred very lucky to go through the whole checkout process and make the payment. These customers ordered all inventory of the CSW so that we are sold out for now.
The order data we received is not consistent and we need to check if we did not sell more units than what we actually had. Our sales team will have a look at each order and will notify you in case there is some uncertainty. We already sent out e-mails today and you will probably get another email if necessary. Of course we will ship the approved orders by the time stamp of the order placement.
There is more inventory on the way so all orders will probably be delivered in July/August.
For now we decided to rollback to the old website sometime on Monday and we will not put the new products online at start. We learned quite a few things with this launch and giving a specific time was not the best idea.
We fixed the the issues but our webserver performance is still not satisfying so we will move to a complete new server and provider and set up everything again. We added several more tests to make sure this will not happen again and the new website will go online within the next weeks.
As soon it is online I will announce it here and on facebook. Make sure you subscribe to our facebook site so you will be notified
A big thanks for all the support and encouraging commnents we received. A big thanks as well for my team around the globe which was trying hard to solve the issues. This launch was not working as planned but we learned and will come back stronger than before.
Thomas
UPDATE
The server crash has damaged our database and now we have inconsistent data. We need to manually check each order and adress between our system, Paypal and the website and this takes longer than expected. We need to do this properly to avoid more chaos. Sorry for the delay.
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Welcome to the new Fanatec website! UPDATE 2
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The wait is finally over and we successfully switched over to the new website.
You are now ready to order the new products or just have a look at the new website.
We made it!
This was a complicated birth and we are exhausted but happy at the same time.
Thanks for staying with us and beeing such a great community.
www. Fanatec.com
Thomas
UPDATE
Ohhmmmmmmmmmm... I need to stay calm and relaxed.....
Ok guys. Looks like we have holy grail for sale and a Playmate of your choice will bring it to you for free. Server is collapsing again and begs for mercy. This is sheer insanity and I am going to get more Red Bull for the team.
UPDATE 2
We have to take the wesbite offline again and fix the issues occured during the overload in the last hours.
We have received many orders but a lot of people did not get a confirmation email or had other issues.
On Monday we will analyze all payments we received and all orders we got. We will then try to fix the orders manually if we have received everything or will contact all customers with incomplete orders to ask for the missing information.
Please don't contact us before Tuesday and give us chance to contact you on Monday. Any individual inquiry will slow down the process.
I can only thank you for beeing such a great audience. Besides the understandable frustrated comments we have received a lot of encouraging comments as well.
I hope you forgive us this bumpy website and product launch.
There will be no more time estimate when the website will be online again but you can be sure that as soon as the site is working fine and is online again you will be notified on facebook and on my blog.
Thomas
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Server is down UPDATE
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Since 12.00 our servers collapsed and is down. This is due to the massive amount of users trying to order the CSW or have a look at the new wesbsite.
This comes unexpected as yesterday there was no such problem under similar load and of course we planned for a massive amount of users by providing plenty of bandwidth.
Please help us and stop pressing F5 for some time as we cannot transfer the websites under overload.
UPDATE
We fixed the server issue. It was a wrong setting. No idea why this was not a problem yesterday. But now there is a new problem in the database which is showing existing customers in EU prices without VAT. Well, I know that most of you will appreciate to pay 19% less and you certainly deserved it with all the pain we give you here but we are not rich enough (yet) to make you such a present.
The problem occured during the import of the database and only on some of the customers so we were not able to detect it in our testing before the launch and even in the initial tests after the import. In fact the server crash down gave us more time so we were lucky to find it.
This is again not a satisfying situation but we will bring this website oline today. Whatever it takes!
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One more day!
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We tried everything but a last minute bug which occured during the import of the database stopped our launch. This is not a minor bug we could have tolerated and solved it later so we were forced to make the painful decision and delay the launch for 24 hours.
I know that this is a big dissapointment and hey I saw your pictures how you lined up and what efforts you make to get to the website in time. I can't deny that we are dissapinted as well as the Endor team is as excited as you are.
Of course this means our line up competition will last one more day longer and I expect to see even more exhausted people waiting in front of our closed doors.
You don't have to be nice now and understand our situation. Don't even think about to feel pity for us. I want you to tell us how you feel! Go and express your emotions. Let it out!
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Win a ClubSport wheel UPDATE
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Patience will be rewarded!
Tomorrow at 12.00 German time (CEST) we are opening our new website on www.Fanatec.com and at the same time our new ClubSport wheel and ClubSport Pedals V2 will be on sale.
Obviously this is the most anticipated product launch in the history of anticipated product launches and we want to make Apple & co jealous with the best and longest queue of hardcore fans lining up in front of our webshop.
So post your picture how you stand in line and wait until our webshop opens on our facebook page.
www.facebook.com/fanatec
Show us your tent in your office and the staples of empty pizza cartons on your desk!
The person who posts the best picture will win a ClubSport wheel with the rim of choice. The competition runs until 5.7. 2012 12.00 CEST.
PS: You are welcome to post your picture here as well but make sure you also post it on facebook.
UPDATE
The amount of likes your picture receives is a very important factor for us to decide about the winner. Make sure you tell your friends to vote for you!
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Introducing the Formula rim for CSR Elite
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A lot of CSR Elite owners want to make use of the function to change the wheel rim on their wheel.
Therefore we developed the formula rim for the CSR Elite wheel.
This wheel rim is only available separately and as an add-on for the Forza Motorsport CSR Elite wheel.
It features the same amount of buttons as the original wheel rim plus an additional 4-way joystick. Both joysticks have the same function on Xbox and PS3 but on PC it can be mapped with different functions.
The grips are made with artificial leather which is easy to clean and feel great.
Of course you will get the same robust metal construction and metal shifter paddles just like on the Formula rim for ClubSport Wheel. There is no quick release and the system is not designed to make rim changes very often. You need to unfasten two screws and unplug two cables so it is simple but it will take longer than the QR of the CSW. You also need to restart the wheel which means on PC you need to restart the game.
It is required to update the firmware of the base to make this rim work but this is not complicated if you just have a PC.
The rim will be available in Q3 and sells for 179,95€ (inclusive VAT) in EU and 179,95 USD (excl. sales tax) in the USA.
It is the only additional wheel rim planned for the CSR Elite at this point. We will now fully concentrate to make additional wheel rims for the ClubSport wheel.
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The countdown started
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The embargo is over and more and more fantastic reviews are coming up. The testers did an incredible job but now it is our turn to deliver.
We are ready to go and will launch the new website this week. This new website will also allow you to place orders for the CSW and CSP V2.
We do have inventory of CSP V2 in both EU and USA and we also have small inventory of CSW and rims in EU. The ship for the US market arrives in a few days. We will have coming in more and more shipments by sea but there is a possibility that we will be short on inventory.
Tomorrow we will go offline so we can switch to the new website and intensively test it. The new website will go online on.
Thursday 5.7.2012 at 12.00 pm (noon) German time
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Community test of ClubSport Wheel: Round 5
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The day has come! Today at 13.00 German time, the embargo ends for the community tests of the ClubSport Wheel and ClubSport Pedals V2. Unboxing videos are allowed immediately.
I have seen that some testers have put a lot of effort into these tests and worked for many days and weeks to provide a detailed and informative review for their community. A lot of them asked in the forum what they should test or even invited fellow racers to come by and have a look at the products directly.
This is real community spirit and I am sure this will be appreciated a lot by the community. The testers did this for YOU and not for Fanatec.
But they also helped us to get more feedback and sort out a few last minute issues as well as they helped us to improve the firmware and driver. There are still a few things to improve but we are now at a very good level.
We already have received the first shipments of the CSW and the CSP V2 but I need to wait until Monday to tell you when we will be able to ship them and start taking orders.
A big thanks as well to Sean who handled the community test and will update this list with links to all reviews here:
Community: iRacing
CT: Todd Bettenhousen
Review: Thread, Video1, Video2, Video3, Video4, Video5, Video6, Video7
CT: Sebastian Keijmel
Review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BiEB6bR4GQ
CT: Ryan Terpstra
Review: http://members.iracing.com/jforum/posts/list/0/2001444.page
CTM: Brent Bundy
Review: http://members.iracing.com/jforum/posts/list/2001456.page
CT: Steve Claeys
Review: http://members.iracing.com/jforum/posts/list/2003217.page#4588831
Community: Konsolenracer.de
CTM: Michael Herrmann
Review (German): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kapgT_hgy_s
CT: Rafael Sempruch
Review (German): http://www.konsolenracer.de/forum/..., English translation
Community: Eutechnyx forums
CT: Florian Kröber
Review (German): http://forums.eutechnyx.com/threads/..., English translation
Community: GTPlanet forums
CTM: Christiaan van Beilen
Review: http://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=257660
CT: Wilfredo Tosado
Review: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1NbLog3WxYLWmZsaEI3eU9WVGs/edit?pli=1
Community: Virtual Racing e.V.
CT: Henning Piez
Review (German): https://dl.dropbox.com/u/78474150/Dokumente/CSW%20Test.pdf
Community: Bockbierbude
CTM: Astrid Winter
Review (German): http://www.bockbierbude.de/component/..., English translation
CT: Sascha Borowski
Review: http://www.bockbierbude.de/component/option,com_fireboard/.. English translation
Community: GTRP.de
CT: Sascha Thomaszik
Review (German): http://www.gtrp.de/showthread.php?39683..., English translation
Community: Romers.dk
CT: Peter Romer
Review (English & Danish): http://www.romers.dk/
Community: NeoGAF
CT: BJ Atchley
Review: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=480531
CTM: Luke Longnacker
Review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iI0_JDgkLg
Community: InsideSimRacing.tv
CT: Jason Langerdorfer
CSPV1&V2 comparison: http://insidesimracing.tv/forums/viewtopic.php?f=149&t=7544
CT: Mike Morbeto
Unboxing: http://insidesimracing.tv/forums/...
Initial review: http://insidesimracing.tv/forums/...
CT: Kevin Gray
CSP V2 review: http://insidesimracing.tv/forums/viewtopic.php?f=149&t=7544
CSW review: http://insidesimracing.tv/forums/viewtopic.php?f=149&t=7542...
Community: Codemasters forums
CT: Zeljko Gusatovic
Unboxing: http://community.codemasters.com/forum/...
Review: http://community.codemasters.com/forum/...
Community: Digitalracing.nl
CT: Roy Visser
Review (Dutch): Part 1, Part2, Part3; English translations: 1, 2, 3
Community: Clubic.com
T: Vivien Caplat
Review (French): http://www.clubic.com/forum/..., English translation
Community: PSX-Racing.de
CT: Mike Voigt
Review (German): http://www.team-mtechnology.de/?p=1269, English Translation
Community: Simracing Deutschland
CT: Güenter Wirges
Review (German): http://simracing-deutschland.de/forum/..., English translation
Community: Hardware.fr
CT: Guillaume Leucelle
Review (French): http://forum.hardware.fr/hfr/Hardware..., English translation
Community: SimHQ
CT&CTM: Conny Naslund & Darren Blythe
Review: http://simhq.com/_technology3/technology_190a.html
Community: RacingFR
CTM: Christophe Godek
CSW review (French): http://www.racingfr.com/forum/..., English translation
CSP v2 review (French): http://www.racingfr.com/forum/..., English translation
Community: ISI Forums
CT: Stephane Amiel
Review: http://isiforums.net/f/showthread.php/...
Community: Nextgen Forum
CTM: neelrocker
Review review (French): http://www.nextgen-forum.com/..., English translation
Community: ApexSpeed
CT: Keith Carter
Review: http://www.apexspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52872
Community: Apex Racing League
CT: Ashley Simpson
Review: http://www.apexracingleague.com/showthread...
Community: Playstation Community forums
CTM: Alexander Prus
Review: http://community.us.playstation.com/...
CT: Steven Driscoll
Review: http://community.us.playstation.com/...
Community: Drivingitalia.NET
CT: Luca Casarotto
Review (Italian): http://www.drivingitalia.net/forum/... English translation
Community: F-wheel.com
CT: Anthony Palombo
Review: http://f-wheel.com/forums/index.php/topic,1933.msg0.html
Community: LFSIC.net
Community: F1-keep-racing-league.com
CT: Marcel Kleene
Review: http://www.f1-keep-racing-league.com/t494...
CT: Alessandro Idda
Review (italian): http://www.lfsic.net/portale/2012/09/... English translation
Thanks to all the forum owners to support this and everybody who was involved. Please give the testers the Kudos they deserve!
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Another BETA Driver: 128 UPDATE -> 129
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We can now offer v128 which fixes many small issues as well as the game crashes.
The Force Feedback engine was improved further.
There is still a known issueif you click on the shortcut symbol on the desktop. If you go directly to the game controller property page it will not happen.
Please report all issues you find so we can get the last issues sorted out.
In perticular we would be interested how this version compares to alternative drivers you might have installed to run our wheels.
Driver BETA 128
UPDATE
We now solved the rF2 crash and improved the code to stop "hanging" ff signals.
We still have the issue when you click on the desktop symbol but that should be fixed soon. Please report what other issues you still find.
Driver BETA 129
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WARNING: Latest Xbox 360 update could cause problems UPDATE
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Several customers have reported issues with our wheels after they made the latest update to their console.
There is also a thread about these issues on forzamotorsport.net
We are still investigating the issues so please report if you have suddenly problems on the Xbox console.
Unfortunately this happened at the same time we released the new firmware so it was hard to see what caused the issues.
Please do not make this update for your Xbox console until the situation is fully clear and we have a slution.
In case you have problems after the latest Xbox update, it would be great if you report them here.
What country?
What wheel?
What firmware version?
Detailed description of the issue
UPDATE
We do not have an official confirmation yet but it seems that the latest Xbox update fixes the issues and the wheels work fine again.
Thanks to Microsoft for the quick reaction on this matter.
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New beta firmware 742 and driver 125 with big changes for almost all Fanatec wheels UPDATE 3
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The internal testing was succesful so far so we are now looking for external beta testers for our new firmware. These versions are clearly BETA versions so please install them only if you are an experienced user.
Firmware 742BETA runs on the follwing wheels:
- CSR
- CSR Elite
- 911 GT3 RS V2
- 911 Turbo S
- 911 GT2
IMPORTANT: If you want to use the RF dongle (for PC and PS3) for your 911 GT2 or Turbo S wheel, please do not update, as with this version you can only use the USB connection afterwards.
There is no firmware update planned for the 911 Turbo (not S), 911 Carrera and 911 GT3RS V1.
We made a lot of changes and these are some of them:
- ACL added to all Wheels
- 500 Hz update rate
- Allows use of SDK to show telemetry data on Tuning display
- Improved force feedback algorithms
- Improved FF sensitivity around center position
- Improved center spring
- DPR and SPR calculation changed
- Improved navigation in Tuning menu (keep pressing the up or down button)
- Default Sensitivity = OFF (900°)
- Changed button mapping to ensure compatibility to older games
- New initialisation sequence to auto detect minimum ff level required for each individual wheel
- fixed issue with hanging ff signals
- Changed button combo for center calibration. Please follow manual of updater (included)
If you use this on PC you also need to isntall the latest BETA version of our driver. Below you find version 125 for 32 and 64 bit.
It also comes with a lot of changes and we fixed a lot of issues we had in the force feedback core of the driver.
Like with the firmware, this version of the driver is only for eperienced users yet and not for the general public. Please report all issues you find right here so we can work on them before releasing the final versions.
Please use this driver version only with 742
UPDATE 2:
When you describe the porblem please make sure to give us the following basic information:
- What wheel?
- What operating system / platform?
- What game / platform shows the issue
- Describe the symptoms as detailed as possible
Thi will help us toreproduce the problem.
Make sure you take care of the following:
- Disconnect the cables and reboot the wheel before you test
- Bind wheel to Xbox again
- Calibrate center
- Caibrate shifter
- Check FW version to see if update worked
We will summarize the bugs and list them here.
UPDATE 3
We now have driver 126 BETA available which will fix some issues in pCARS and perhaps other games. The damper calculation is imporved to avoid the notchy feeling.
PWGT3RSV2 681
If you have problems you can find the previeous fw versions here:
PWTS 681
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More testers for website needed - UPDATE
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We are very close to release the new website and then we are finally able to start taking pre-orders for the CSW as well.
If you are interested to help us finding the last remaining bugs please just make a short post here and Marie will contact you with the log in data.
Thank you very much in advance!
UPDATE:
Thanks for the great response. It is great to have such a helpful communities and so many helpful people.
We have almost 100 testers and this is enough to get it fully tested. Fantastic!
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ClubSport Wheel Embargo Date
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Next week the last of the community testers will receive their wheels so that the testing period can start. I wanted to give all testers at least 2 weeks for testing so that means that the embargo date of the Clubsport wheel and rims as well as the Clubsport Pedals V2 will end on June 29th at 13.00 German time.
By that time we also expect that the first shipments of production units arrive in the USA and EU by air shipment. We will make a special launch offer but I will release more information about that as soon as the wheels are on the way so it is 100% sure that they arrive in time.
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Great LED support in Live for Speed
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Gerben has made good use of our SDK and made a fantastic implemention of our wheels in Live for Speed.
In the video you can see what you can do with the LED display if it is supported by the game.
In order to be able to properly show this telemetry data you need to upgrade the firmware of your wheel. We are therefore working on firmware updates for the following wheels:
- 911 GT3RS V2
- 911 Turbo S
- 911 GT2
- CSR
- CSR Elite
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Production of ClubSport wheel has started
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We finally started the production of the ClubSport base and rims.
The production preparation took longer than expected as we decided to make a lot of customized fixtures for each step in order to get maximum quality.
You can see the production line in a short video I made with my mobile phone and posted on our Facebook page.
www.Facebook.com/Fanatec
We will start shipping in May so the first wheels will arrive in our warehouses in June. We will not airship units this time. The pre-orders will start soon but I want the wheels on the boat so we know when they arrive.
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Introducing the new ClubSport Pedals V2
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We thought about how to make something good even better and came up with the evolution of a legend. The ClubSport Pedals V2.
The ClubSport Pedal was the first of our ClubSport product line which represent these values:
- All metal construction
- High-End technology
- Outstanding industrial design
- Unbeatable price performance
As you all know there will be more ClubSport products coming up and they all have to match the level of the CSPs.
The new V2 version is rather an evolutiona than a complete new design because sometimes it is better not to change too much. Here are the new features:1. Look
The pedals now come in anodized black and polished aluminum parts which gives it a more exclusive and classy touch. Of course the colour kits are fully compatible so you can change the look to all black or combine it with grey, orange red or blue.2. Hydraulic brake
We have added an oil damper to the load cell brake to give it a more realistic and dampenend feeling. The feeling can be adjusted by replacing the silicone oil and use different viscosity and by changing the spring tension on the damper. It is simple but very effective. We also made the load cell brake stiffer and with a shorter travel by default.3. Degressive clutch mechanism
Our Japanese friend Teki Ei-Ichi developed a new mechanism for the clutch for us. It gives you a degressive feel just like in a real car. Of course you can still adjust the spring strength.There is no Tuning Kit up to now but we will have a kit coming up later. We thought about an upgrade kit as well but there are too many parts to replace so it would be quite expensive and it would be very complicated to install. The CSP achieve good prices at eBay so we doubt that it would be worth to offer such a kit as V1 owners would not save much money but have the hassle of installation and end up with a product with the old look and used parts. Therefore we decided not to offer such an upgrade kit and I hope you agree.
The CSP V2 will be shipped together with the ClubSport Wheel and we expect the first shipment in USA, EU and AUS in June. We will start taking pre-orders from our new website in May.
Price: 249,95 € (incl VAT) in EU and 249,95 USD (excl sales tax) in USA. Australian prices still need to be determined.
Thanks to Amar for the great pictures and to Björn who made the spectacular video.
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Community test for Clubsport Wheel: Round 4
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Almost all polls are closed so we are almost ready to start ROUND 4 of the community test for our new ClubSport Wheel and ClubSport Pedals V2.
Let the tests begin!
We have received the air shipment of the ClubSport Wheels with rims along with brand new ClubSport Pedals V2. I will show you more details about this pedal very soon but you can also expect to see some reviews as well if some testers decide to test them.
Sean will now start to ask all testers what equipment they like to test.
Congratulations to all winners of the polls! It was a close call in many forums and we have a lot of very interesting reviewers.
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Display support for ClubSport Wheel in iRacing EDIT: ...and pCARS
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Steaphan Turpin made a plug in for iRacing to show different settings in the Tuning display of the ClubSport Wheel.
You can also see the rev lights working on the Formula rim for the first time. Please note that the intensity of theblue LEDs will be increased in mass production. On the video the first 3 LEDs on the left appear to be red but they are yellow.
He used the Lotus 79 on Virginia raceway and on the display you can see the current fuel consumption.
Together with the wheels for the community testers we will send wheels to all major racing game developers along with our SDK so you can expect broad support in all the upcoming new hot titles.
EDIT: With the latest build of pCARS our wheels also show the current gear while driving. Mike made a video to show that feature in his fantastic racing setup.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_videoeditor&v=cIkPxK8PIps
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Community test for ClubSport Wheel: Round 3
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We finally started ROUND 3 with the polls to select the community testers.Thank you very much for the great interest and participation in not less than 32 simracing forums of many counties.
This is probably the biggest community review ever made for simracing hardware and I would like to thank everybody for the application and the efforts they already made to introduce themselves. I am also very happy about the choice we made with the CTMs as they are doing a superb job.
Sean will update a list to the threads here so you can have quick access to all the ongoing polls.
CTM: Adam Flockton
Forum: Codemasters forums
Link: CLICK
Winner: Goose83CTM: Christiaan van Beilen
Forum: GTPlanet forums
Link: CLICK
Winner: MayamanCTM: Sean Cebron
Forum: F-wheel.com forums
Link: CLICK
Winner: Intimidat3er421CTM: Brent Bundy
Forum: iRacing
Link: CLICK
Winners: Todd Bettenhausen, Steve Claeys, Ryan TerpstraCTM: Yeison Peralta
Forum: Apex Racing League
Link: CLICK
Winner: AC_SimpsCTM: Jon Wethen
Forum: North American Grand Prix
Link: CLICK
Winner: EzzaCTM: Christophe Godek
Forum: RacingFR
Link: CLICK
Winner: AvereLLCTM: Sebastian Keijmel
Forum: DigitalRacing.nl
Link: CLICKCTM: Michael Herrmann
Forum: KonsolenRacer
Link: CLICK
Winner: Fong74CTM: Daniel Schumacher
Forum: PSX-racing.de
Link: CLICK
Winner: Mike VoigtCTM: Astrid Winter
Forum: Bockbierbude
Link: CLICK
Winner: BladeRunner74CTM: Marcel Kleene
Forum: F1-2010-forum.de
Link: CLICK
Winner: sirschmockCTM: Zac Burke
Forum: ApexSpeed
Link: CLICK
Winner: Keith CarterCTM: Remco van Dijk
Forum: NoGripRacing
Link: CLICK
Winner: zilk1221
Forum: WMD (Project CARS)
Link: CLICK
Winner: chrisracerCTM: Nicola Trivilino
Forum: DrivingItalia.net
Link: CLICK
Winner: Schummy1CTM: Steven Ciofalo
Forum: ISI Forums
Link: CLICK
Winner: John CrichtonCTM: Ceth (also known as Neelrocker and Madcat)
Forum: Hardware.fr
Link: CLICK
Winner: gus84
Forum: Nextgen-auto.com
Link: CLICK
Winner: little
Forum: Clubic.com
Link: CLICK
Winner: kpla46CTM: Radek Żukowski
Forum: SimRacing PL
Link: CLICK
Winner: LesiUCTM: Peer Dorn
CTM: Kevin Orthey
Forum: gtrp.de
Link: CLICK
Winner: Rudi Raser
Forum: Virtualracing.org
Link: CLICK
Winner: Henning Piez
Forum: VO-Racing.de
Link: CLICK
Winner: Daniel A.
CTM: Michael Haidorf
Forum: Simracing Deutschland e.V.
Link: CLICK
Winner: Guenter Wirges
Forum: racersleague.com
Link: CLICK
Winner: Mauritio MelliesCTM: Stefan Kremer
Forum: Eutechnyx forums
Link: CLICK
Winner: FlannaCTM: Alexander Prus (thepatriots)
Forum: US PlayStation Boards
Link: CLICK
Winner: Choate51CTM: Darren Blythe
Forum: SimHQ
Link: CLICK
Winner: F19_CoNaCTM: Gianni Longhin
Forum: LFS ITALIAN COMMUNITY
Link: CLICK
Winner: ale85CTM: Jani Grundström
Forum: Varikkosuora.org
Link: CLICK
Winner: OdeFinnCTM: Iñigo Roger Chalmeta
Forum: MundoGT.es
Link: CLICK
Winner: IRT-KIOSKOCTM: Roger Billings
CTM: Luke Longnecker
Forum: InsideSimRacing.tv
Link: CLICK
Winners: Seahawks1Fan, GoCart Death, mikemav
Forum: NeoGAF
Link: CLICK
Winner: YoritomoOn several forums we had more then 10 applications so the CTMs have chosen 10 finalists without our influence. We think that this is the best way to choose an objective tester which is as unbiased and independent as possible. If you still think that we can improve something, please let me know.
I would like to take the opportunity to wish everybody a happy Easter!
Happy egg hunt on my blog
Thomas
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What rim do you want?
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Let's talk about future wheel rims for the ClubSport wheel.
We are currently working on four rims of which two of them have been announced already. I would like to encourage you to let me know what rims you like most and what functions they should have like
- Amount of buttons
- Amount of shifter paddles (analog and/or buttons)
- Material of rim
- Material and colours of the inner rim
- Diameter
- Weight
- Target price
- ?
Just let me know whatever you think might be helpful. We have almost no technical limitation on the ClubSport Base.
These are the rims which are currently under development or in planning phase:
- BMW GT2
- FORMULA
- NASCAR
- Classic (wood)
- Classic F1
- F1 licensed
- F1 generic
- LMP1
- Drift
- Rallye
- Porsche GT
- Simrace special (not realistic but optimized for performance)
Please note that the order does not indicate any priorities. It can take several years until all rims will be ready for production.
For the CSR Elite wheel we will introduce the Formula rim for sure and depending on the success of this add-on we will release a GT rim as well. The electronics of the CSR Elite wheel are limited so we cannot have a proper quick release, rev light indicators, analog joystick, encoder switches or the same amount of buttons like on the CSW rims. The CSR E rims have to follow exactly the same specs as the original wheel.
So please let me know what you want and we will do our best to deliver those rims in the next years.
PS: We will not make adapters to connect other wheel rims as this brings too many technical problems and issues with warranty and safety.
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Pricing of ClubSport Wheel series
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As we are getting the final manufacturing cost I can confirm the final pricing of the ClubSport Wheel series.
Prices are as usual in Euro with VAT included and in USD without sales tax.
ClubSport Wheel Base: 449,95
BMW GT2 rim: 249,95
Formula rim: 179,95
This is just the beginning so there will be much more rims coming up at a lower and higher price. Pricing for Japan, Australia and Canada will be announced at a later date.
We are considering to fly in some wheels so this would increase cost a bit but we need to get final quotations for airfreight first.
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The perfect simracing location
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Last week I have been at the Hockenheim ring to present two of our RennSport Cockpits with a new racing simulation (not from EA or MS) in the pit which was used by Sebastian Vettel at the last F1 GP in (edit:) 2010.
The track was used for testing the new Porsche Cup cars for both the Carrera and the Supercup so we had the pleasure to be surrounded by the fastest 911s.
At this point I cannot tell you anything more about the new racing simulation other that it looked great and the Porsche Cup drivers had a lot fun driving with it. The lap times were very similar.
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Community test for ClubSport Wheel: Round 2
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We finally get the ball rolling and start ROUND 2 of the community test of our new ClubSport Wheel Base and the Formula and BMW GT2 rims.
Sean Cebron, or better known as Sonac of f-wheel.com, will take over the handling for all these tests and will notify the appointed community test managers today.
Here you find a list of all CTMs and the communities they are handling. As soon as Sean receives the link of the forum where to put your application to be selected in the polls will also be listed here.
CTM: Adam Flockton
Forum: Codemasters forums
Link: CLICK
CTM: Christiaan van Beilen
Forum: GTPlanet forums
Link: CLICK
CTM: Sean Cebron
Forum: F-wheel.com forums
Link: CLICK
CTM: Zac Burke
Forum: ApexSpeed
Link: CLICK
CTM: Jon Wethen
Forum: North American Grand Prix
Link: CLICK
CTM: Yeison Peralta
Forum: Apex Racing League
Link: CLICK
CTM: Radek Żukowski
Forum: SimRacing PL
Link: CLICK
CTM: Remco van Dijk
Forum: NoGripRacing
Link: CLICK
Forum: WMD (Project CARS)
Link: CLICK
CTM: Stefan Kremer
Forum: Eutechnyx forums
Link: CLICK CLICK CLICK
Forum: PC GAMES HARDWARE EXTREME
Link: CLICK
CTM: Michael Herrmann
Forum: KonsolenRacer
Link: CLICK
CTM: RaceRabbit
Forum: OvalEggRacing.com
Link: (Edit: Easter is over but we will release the firmware soon)
CTM: Steven Ciofalo
Forum: ISI Forums
Link: CLICK
Forum: RaceDepartment
Link: (EDIT: Link removed because Racedepartment does not support community reviews)
CTM: Daniel Schumacher
Forum: PSX-racing.de
Link: CLICK
CTM: Christophe Godek
Forum: RacingFR
Link: CLICK
CTM: Astrid Winter
Forum: Bockbierbude
Link: CLICK
CTM: Brent Bundy
Forum: iRacing
Link: CLICK
CTM: Gianni Longhin
Forum: LFS ITALIAN COMMUNITY
Link: CLICK
CTM: Sebastian Keijmel
Forum: DigitalRacing.nl
Link: CLICK
CTM: Jani Grundström
Forum: Varikkosuora.org
Link: CLICK
CTM: Marcel Kleene
Forum: F1-2010-forum.de
Link: CLICK
CTM: Ceth (also known as Neelrocker and Madcat)
CTM: Michael Haidorf
Forum: Simracing Deutschland e.V.
Link: CLICK
Forum: racersleague.com
Link: CLICK
Forum: Hardware.fr
Link: CLICK
Forum: Nextgen-auto.com
Link: CLICK
Forum: Clubic.com
Link: CLICK
CTM: Darren Blythe
Forum: SimHQ
Link: CLICK
CTM: Alexander Prus (thepatriots)
Forum: US PlayStation Boards
Link: CLICK
CTM: Nicola Trivilino
Forum: DrivingItalia.net
Link: CLICK
CTM: Kevin Orthey
Forum: Virtualracing.org
Link: CLICK
Forum: VO-Racing.de
Link: CLICK
CTM: Peer Dorn
Forum: gtrp.de
Link: CLICK
CTM: Iñigo Roger Chalmeta
Forum: MundoGT.es
Link: CLICK
CTM: Luke Longnecker
CTM: Roger Billings
Forum: InsideSimRacing.tv
Link: CLICK
Forum: NeoGAF
Link: CLICK
We have selected plenty of forums so you should see a lot of unbiased and independent reviews coming up for the CSW. The wheels for the testers are already produced and on the way to our warehouses so testing can start very soon.
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